Moony's Memory
by throughhiseyes
Summary: Holiday's are all about making memories with the ones you love, but sometimes those memories can be painful for the unprepared.


**Disclaimer:** All canon characters, plots and situations from the Harry Potter series belong to JK Rowling. We make no profit from this story.

 **Beta thanks:**

MammaWeasley27

Remus had just finished changing Teddy's diaper when Tonks called out, "Love? Mum and I are back from the store, and I got Teddy a costume." He heard some bags being shuffled and faint giggling. Shaking his head, he murmured to Teddy, "Let's go see what these silly women got you."

Walking into the living room, he could only see Andromeda from the back; she was holding up what looked like a grey blob in her hands. Teddy squealed out "Gran-mum" as soon as he saw Andromeda, and when she turned, the grey blob that Remus had seen in her hands turned out to be a grey wolf with big, white teeth, and a long fluffy tail.

Depositing Teddy gently on the floor, Remus reached out for the funny-looking costume, and turned to stare at Tonks. "What is this?" he questioned, taking a step closer to her. "Why is our son going to be wolf?" Walking slowly towards Remus she grabbed his empty hand and led him towards their bedroom, communicating to her mom with her eyes that she should keep an eye on Teddy.

Once in the bedroom, she whispered, "I remember what you told me about James, and what they had planned for Harry all those years ago." With tears in his eyes, Remus crumpled onto the floor, remembering the last time that he had seen his best friends.

* * *

Remus apparated in behind James and Lily's house two weeks before Halloween. He had gotten an owl just the other day from James saying that he needed Remus to stop by the house because he and Lily had something to show him, he came as soon as he could get away from his assignment. Walking up to the back door that lead into the kitchen, he raised his fist to knock, pausing when he heard a voice call out, "Oh, man! I'm not sure if he is going to love that or not." A feminine giggle answered the voice, "He should, he knows that…" her reply was drowned by Remus finally knocking on the door.

Sirius opened the door and pulled Remus into a hug, "Happy Halloween, Moony!" Remus shook his head, "It's still two weeks away," walking around the animagus, saying hello to Peter and kissing Lily on the cheek. Glancing around the kitchen he asked, "Where are Harry and Prongs?" Lily stood up and walked into the doorway that lead from the kitchen to the living room and stated "Now Remus, we've thought long and hard about this," she paused to glare at Sirius who had fallen to his knees laughing. Once he silenced his laughs, she continued, "You know we love you; you are not a monster, and that's why we couldn't think of better costume for Harry."

She stepped back and revealed James holding Harry in what looked to be a thick, furry, brown costume. Remus thought that his face must have looked confused, because James laughed loudly and answered his unspoken question. "He's going to be a wolf for Halloween!"

Taking a step back with what must've been a horrified expression on his face, Remus darted past Sirius' open arms and ran out the door. Lily ran after him, waving her wand to lock the wards down before he could escape.

"Remus!" Lily shouted, stopping a few feet behind him, "Please come and see how happy Harry is." Remus spun on his heel, taking a deep breath to calm his anger, he uttered, "He's happy because he is a one year old, surrounded by people he loves."

Shaking her head, Lily stepped closer to him and grabbed his hand, "You don't understand: when we took him out, that's the only thing he wanted." Laying her other hand on his cheek she whispered, "He wants to be like his uncle Moony."

* * *

A tiny squeal tore Remus out of his reverie, lifting his head he realized that his body had curled into the fetal position with his head on Tonks' lap. Hesitantly meeting her eyes, he saw they were full of unshed tears and love.

"I'm sorry, love," she whispered, stroking his hair. "I thought that it would be a good way to remember them." Sitting up, Remus wrapped his arms around his wife and murmured his thanks.

They sat on the floor in an awkward embrace until Andromeda knocked on the door, "Harry is here; everyone is ready to go trick or treating."

Remus stood first, reaching his hands out to pull Tonks up. He gave her a kiss on top of her head and steeled his nerves to go see the rest of his family.

Upon walking into the living room, he saw that Teddy had been changed into the wolf costume, and Hermione and Ginny were fawning over him. Harry walked forward to embrace Remus with an odd look on his face.

After hugging Harry, Remus sat down on the couch and said, "Let me explain why Teddy is a wolf."

Harry, Ginny, and Hermione followed his example and sat down across from him. Hermione made bubbles come from her wand to entertain Teddy so everyone could listen in relative peace.

Running his fingers through his hair, Remus took a shaky breath and started his tale. "Two weeks before Halloween, your parents called me to their house to show me something. You had been dressed up as a brown wolf- I was in and out of wolf packs by then, so I felt completely like a monster." he explained.

"Your parents thought that if I saw you as a wolf, then I wouldn't feel like such a beast. I yelled at everyone and tried to leave, but Lily stopped me."

Leaning forward to rest his elbows on his knees, he continued, "Your mother was so fiery, Harry. She knew exactly what to say. She told me that it was the only costume that you had wanted to wear, because it reminded you of me."

Locking eyes with Harry, he stated. "It sort of worked, but then Halloween happened... So, Tonks thought that his would be a good way to honor your parents today."

Harry stood up and pulled Tonks into a fierce hug, wiping the tears away from his eyes. The permeating sadness was thankfully broken by Teddy howling like a wolf and giggling to himself as he played.

With the tension gone, the group stood and put sweaters on to battle the cold. "Let's go get Daddy some chocolate." Remus exclaimed as he picked up Teddy.

Slinging his free arm around Tonks, Remus' heart felt a little lighter, keeping the memories of his friends alive as he went about his night.


End file.
